Tellez-Giron earns degree from CIA

Kaiulani Tellez-Giron has become the first transfer student from the Culinary Institute of America’s San Antonio campus to graduate from the school’s main campus in Hyde Park, N.Y.

Tellez-Giron obtained her associate degree and plans to continue her studies to earn her bachelor’s degree.

She was born in San Antonio and raised in Mexico City. According to the school, “Her experience making a variety of traditional Mexican foods with her family led her to pursue a career as a chef.”

She plans to continue her studies until she achieves her master’s in food science from Cornell University. “Her career goal is to specialize in the science of food, and she would like to use the knowledge she has gained at the CIA to teach future generations of chefs one day,” the school says.

Tellez-Giron is one of nine CIA students who have finished the 30-week program in San Antono and transferred to Hyde Park in pursuit of a culinary-arts degree.